Wednesday, March 11, 2009

review: sophomore switch by abby mcdonald

This is a fun "beach-read." Two college students (one British, one American) do an atypical semester abroad. It's atypical in that the two do a swap requiring them to take each other's classes rather than stick with their own programs. I doubt that this would ever actually happen, but the girls have to be forced into each other’s classes in order for the plot to work. While the girls initially don't contact each other, they eventually find themselves in need of advice as well as contact with someone who understands the situation.

I found it a little jarring that the girls get in touch over instant messaging when there had previously been no mention of either girl using the program to contact family or friends. However, the instant messaging style of each girl is consistent with her character. I also felt that some of the language used was too sarcastic to be coming from the girls. The book is written in the first person, so I assumed each description came from the narrator. It seemed quite out of character for Emily to be making fun of her schedule (as the sarcastic tone of the language implied) before she decides to make an effort to relax more. 3/5
ARC review Review copy from LibraryThing Early Reviewers.